His Love Makes Me Beautiful
by somethinprettty
Summary: Klaus/Caroline, 3x11: He's taken aback by her abrupt nature, but he finds it refreshing…endearing, even. She holds her own against him in a way that's charming and not at all frightening. "I mean – why did you save me?"


**Author's Note: I thought the concept of Klaus/Caroline was absolutely ridiculous – but that scene in 3x11 changed my mind. Anyways, I've never written for this ship before and I've never written the character of Klaus with a human side, and I've never written Caroline like this so it might be a little bit OOC but here it is anyway! _Let me know what you think!_**

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><p><strong><em>I am the beautiful reflection<br>Of my loves affection  
>A walking illustration<br>Of his adoration  
><em>****_His love makes you beautiful  
><em>****_So beautiful, so beautiful _**

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><p>Caroline Forbes has a heart of gold – it is both her greatest strength and it will be her weakest downfall. She doesn't know how to love someone half way – she either loves all of them or none of them. She doesn't know how to truly hate. She doesn't know how to walk away from someone that she cares about. She doesn't think she could even if she wanted to.<p>

But Klaus is an unknown. He's singlehandedly managed to shift the world of Mystic Falls on its axis, and make everyone rethink who they are and who he is, Caroline Forbes included.

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><p>She finds the most expensive foreclosure in town and knows it's his by the ridiculous amount of bedrooms – she assumes one for each coffin. She takes a deep breath and counts to three before knocking on the large double door.<p>

"It's a pleasure seeing you again, Caroline. Did you like my gift?" Klaus teases once he invites her in not a minute later. She waits until they're both standing in what she assumes to be his living room before she all but throws the silver bracelet back at him.

"I don't want it," she says bitterly, folding her arms across her chest defiantly. The spoiled girl in her starts yearning for the pretty silver bracelet the minute it's out of her ownership, but she knows that it's wrong, not to mention that Elena and Bonnie would _kill_ her. "I just came by to give that back to you."

"I can't take this back," Klaus tells her, feigning disappointment in the return of the silver bracelet. "It was a gift. It's yours."

She fights the urge to laugh. "My friends would have me checked into a psychiatric facility if she found out that I kept a gift from the devil himself."

"Well that's a bit dramatic, don't you think?" he muses. "Besides, theoretically – you're an adult now. You should be allowed to make your own decisions, keep your own gifts."

Her eyes narrow together in confused anger. "What's with your sudden interest in me?" she questions, an eyebrow raised incredulously. He's taken aback by her abrupt nature, but he finds it refreshing…endearing, even. She holds her own against him in a way that's charming and not at all frightening. "I mean – why did you save me?"

"I thought it would be a shame if you died on your birthday," Klaus tells her nonchalantly. She doesn't say anything; instead she waits for an answer that'll placate her. "You didn't deserve to die, Caroline. Tyler was simply doing what I had asked him to. In a lot of ways, it tested his loyalty."

"I can't…I mean I don't…why?" she settles on, her voice meeker than ever before.

"It's nothing personal, love. If it helps – when I told him what I wanted him to do, he downright refused. He would have preferred to anger me, his sire – than to put you in harm's way. You were what I refer to as collateral damage, but fret not. It all worked out in the end."

She lets out a laugh that is akin to disbelief. "Everything _worked out_ in the end?" she repeats incredulously. "I don't know if you've noticed, but since you came to town – the residents of Mystic Falls have been dropping like flies one way or another! _Nothing_ worked out. Everything is still a bloody mess, no pun intended."

Klaus chuckles lightly, and she thinks it's the strangest thing she's ever heard. "As soon as Stefan decides to give back what belongs to me, then all will be fine and dandy in this tragic little town."

"This tragic little town _is my home_," Caroline tells him angrily. He's amused by her wording and her courage; he doesn't think she's fully aware _who_ she's talking to. "These people that you think are your puppets? They're my friends and they're my family."

"And what about my family, love?" Klaus challenges, his voice too low to be genuine. But she sees something flash behind his eyes nonetheless; she thinks it's something akin to longing. "I may be an immortal hybrid, but there are some things that even I value."

"Then why carry them around in coffins?" she wonders. Her question is filled with genuine curiosity. He lets out an incredulous chuckle, and she sees something akin to humanity flash behind his eyes. It's gone before she can be sure.

He's now standing in front of her – toe to toe; his boots to her high heels. He offers her a small smile, and she thinks it's the most genuine one she's ever seen on him. "There are some things, Caroline," he pauses and waits until her gaze locks with his. "That even I can't explain or justify. Some things just are."

She nods and steps around him, heading towards the door before she pauses in the doorway. She turns on her heels and looks at him, a mystified expression on her face. "So I guess even the big bad wolf has a weakness after all," she muses.

And then she's gone.

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><p>She's ready to put the awful school day behind her when she finds him standing in her room, his eyes glancing over the bulletin board that is covered in happy memories of the girl she'll never be again. "What are you doing here? In my house…in my room?" she asked, unable to keep the disbelief out of her voice.<p>

He smirks at her before reaching into his pocket. Her forehead furrows together in confusion until her eyes zero in on a slender black, velvet box. She recognizes it immediately, and the bewilderment settles in again. "I came to return your gift," he says, raising his eyebrows playfully.

"I don't want anything from you!" she hisses bitterly. "And just because you've been invited in doesn't mean that you can just…surprise me in my room. It's creepy. You're like a billion and you're evil!"

He chuckles lightly. "It's just a matter of perception, love."

"Whatever," she shrugs him off, brushing past him as if he weren't even there. As she shrugs off her jacket, she realizes that he isn't going anywhere until he gets what he wants. "Okay fine, if you want me to keep the bracelet, then here!" she extended her hand, snatching the box from his hand. "Then there – it's mine. Can you please leave now?"

He smirks and then suddenly; he's standing in front of her, his eyes boring into hers. "Goodbye, Caroline. I'll be seeing you."

And then he's gone.

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><p>She's standing at the side of the room, watching as couples float across the dance floor, letting their bodies soak in the pretty melodies that sound throughout the room. Her thoughts are interrupted by a sudden gush of air, and she knows she's not alone.<p>

"May I have this dance?" He's standing behind her, his lips dangerously close to her ear and she shivers; out of nerves or butterflies, she can't decipher. She hopes it's the former.

It's starting to feel like the air has been sucked out of her lungs, and her undead heart begins to race inside of her chest. Her first instinct is to walk away and never look back. But as her eyes stray to the swaying couples on the dance floor, as she watches Damon tighten his hold on Elena, and as she watches Sophie nestle closer to Tyler, she feels her heart begin to break.

She feels herself break.

So that's how she found herself in the arms of Klaus, swaying across the dance floor of the Lockwood Mansion at the Annual Founder's Ball. It's a very formal dance, and she finds that they come together easy as they dance around the room. It's almost effortless.

"You look lovely, Caroline."

He's looking at her like she's the only one in the room. She carefully avoids his gaze, fearful for what it might hold. So she looks past his shoulder at the eyes that are scrutinizing the unusual couple on the dance floor. He doesn't seem to mind. In fact, he begins to hum a soft melody in her ear – and it makes her shiver.

"Do I make you nervous?" he whispers, his voice dangerously close to seduction. She shivers in his embrace, swallowing back the nerves that are building beneath her skin and she shakes her head simply, still avoiding his gaze. "Are you sure about that, love?" he questions.

She feels his hand drift upwards, touching the exposed skin of her back, and she tries desperately not to tremble beneath his touch. "It's chilly in here," she says bitterly, trying to keep the emotion out of her voice.

He chuckles lightly. "You know what I think?"

"No, but I bet you're gonna tell me anyway."

She's seen Damon do this – deflect with sarcasm. It usually ends up with people getting pissed off at him; but at this point, she'll do anything to keep the man in her arms at bay.

"I think I make you nervous," he tells her. She opens her mouth to object before the breath is knocked out of her when she's spun out of his embrace into a fancy twirl before she's pulled back to his body, the two of them now closer than ever.

She takes a deep breath and pulls herself back to look him in the eye. She sees no emotion there, but she isn't going to back down. "You make me nervous because you can kill me with just a snap of your fingers. You make me nervous because you've managed to singlehandedly our lives upside down."

He shrugs his shoulders indifferently. "Collateral damage," he pauses and his smirk finds itself back onto his lips. "I see you're wearing the bracelet I gave you."

It was her turn to shrug her shoulders. "It went with my outfit."

"So did Tyler's," he points out with a smirk. He was the first to notice that the song had ended and everyone was switching partners. He gently took her glove clad hand, a smile on his face as he gently pressed his lips against the back of her hand. "It was a pleasure dancing with you, Caroline. Perhaps you'll save me the last dance?"

And she does.

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><p>For the first time in a long time, she feels okay. She feels at peace with her life and the people around her. For the first time in a long time, she has hope that maybe everything will be okay. She hasn't seen Klaus since the dance, and she doesn't plan on it. They danced twice and he saved her life, but that's all there is to it.<p>

Or so she thought.

It's a Monday morning when her geography teacher hands her an envelope. Her first instinct is that it's her report card or a newsletter for the next school function, so she doesn't think anything of it. It isn't until a small card falls out of the envelope, delicate writing on the white parchment that she feels her blood run cold in a way that both scares and thrills her.

_Dearest Caroline,  
><em>

_As promised, the world awaits you.  
><em>_The city of lights is a good place to start._

_Klaus._

In the envelope lies her gift. It's a round trip for two to Paris.

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><p>She comes home from school the next week and there's another envelope waiting for her on the kitchen table. The second she feels her blood run cold she knows that it's from him. She contemplates just throwing it out, but she doesn't. The curiosity is too strong.<p>

She reads the small card first, hoping to find some answers in his delicate handwriting. But there are no answers, only more questions.

_Dear Caroline,_

_The world is your canvas.  
>Paint it beautifully.<em>

_Klaus_

Inside the envelope are brochures on arguably every monumental, prestigious museum in the world. There's information on _The Musee du Louvre_ in Paris, the _Metropolitan Museum of Art and Museum of Modern Art _in New York and the _Vatican Museum_ in Rome.

She puts everything with the plane tickets and tucks it in the back of her mind, not daring to think about it for even one second. Well, tries not to.

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><p>She comes back from a girl's night at the grill only to find a large cardboard box in the middle of her living room, the words <em>fragile<em> stamped on like a parcel. She has no idea how something this big could have gotten into her small living room without something else breaking or someone noticing, but she thinks that when you're an original – anything is possible.

She gently sets her purse down before gently taking the envelope off the box, reading the message written in his delicate scrawl.

_Dearest Caroline,_

_Music fills the infinite between two souls._

_Klaus_

She can't fight the smile that falls on her lips when she finally opens the box. It's a baby grand piano, and she thinks its one of the most beautiful things she's ever seen in her life. She stays up into the wee hours of the morning, playing soft melodies by the fireplace, imagining a beautiful place that she can only visit in her dreams.

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><p>She told her mother that the piano was a gift for herself, something about needing a hobby throughout the town's vampire problems. Her mother didn't question her, something about seeing the smile on her face was enough of an answer.<p>

It was a Friday night five weeks later when Caroline's final package came. She was dressed in her favorite pajamas, the ones with the sheep, stars and moon on them. She had no makeup on, her usually tame blonde hair tied up atop her head in a messy bun. She's watching reruns of Friends when she hears the knock at her door.

She reluctantly sets the popcorn bowl aside, pausing the television and answering the door. She opens it and looks around her porch, initially thinking it was some dumb kids playing Nicky, Nicky, Nine Doors (she used to play it all the time with Bonnie, Elena, Jeremy, Matt, Tyler and Vicki when she was a kid).

It isn't until she takes a step back, readying herself to close the door that she sees the long and thin box that is on her doorstep. She picks it up hesitantly, her eyes roaming the front yard once more before she retreats inside. She returns to her seat on the couch before tugging on the big blue bow, stetting it aside gently and then gently taking off the silver wrapping paper.

It's a black velvet box, much larger than her very first gift but akin in its shape. The note is like the one when he first gave her the bracelet, on a simple white card, written by hand and for some reason, she smiles.

_Dearest Caroline,_

_The most genuine beauty of them all…_

_Klaus_

Her forehead furrows together in a mixture of confusion and anticipation. She starts to wonder about all the things that could be in the box. She thinks that maybe it's a Tiffany necklace or maybe a rare flower or a really pretty picture of a place she'll never see.

She takes a deep breath and opens the box, her undead heart skipping a beat when she sees its contents.

It's an antique hand held mirror. The long silver, slender handle holds the head of the mirror, where there is extremely delicate as well as astonishingly beautiful designs etched on the back. Almost undistinguishable to the human eye, but recognizable with her vampire eyes – she sees the intricate engraving in the centre of the back.

_Beauty is in the eye of the beholder._

She turns the mirror around to look at her reflection and she smiles. She's never felt so beautiful.

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><p><em><strong>please leave a review.<strong>_


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